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Camden County, New Jersey
Camden County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 513,657. Its county seat is Camden. It was formed on March 13, 1844, from portions of Gloucester County."The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606–1968", John P. Snyder, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 103. This county is part of the Delaware Valley area. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (2.32%) is water.GCT-PH1. Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2000 for Camden County, New Jersey -- County Subdivision and Place, United States Census Bureau. Accessed September 14, 2011. Located in a coastal/alluvial plain area, the county is uniformly flat and low-lying. The highest points are a survey benchmark near the Burlington County line at 219 feet (66.7 m) above sea level, and another nearby area at least . The low point is sea level, along the Delaware River. Adjacent counties *Burlington County, New Jersey – northeast *Atlantic County, New Jersey – southeast *Gloucester County, New Jersey – southwest *Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – northwest National protected area * Great Egg Harbor Scenic and Recreational River (part) Demographics }} As of the 2010 Census the population of Camden County was 60.28% Non-Hispanic white, 18.45% Non-Hispanic black, 1.12% Hispanic blacks, 0.17% Non-Hispanic Native American, 0.15% Hispanic Native Americans, 5.07% Non-Hispanic Asian, and 0.14% non-Hispanics reporting some other race. The preceding figures all only include those who reported one race, 1.63% of the population was non-Hispanics who reported more than one race. Overall 14.24% of the Camden County population was Hispanic.Camden County, New Jersey, 2010 United States Census. Accessed August 23, 2011. As of the census of 2000, there were 508,932 people, 185,744 households, and 129,835 families residing in the county. The population density was 2,289 people per square mile (884/km²). There were 199,679 housing units at an average density of 898 per square mile (347/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 70.88% White American, 18.09% Black or African American, 0.26% Native American, 3.72% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 5.09% from other races, and 1.93% from two or more races. 9.66% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 17.9% were of Italian, 15.4% Irish, 10.5% German and 5.3% English ancestry according to Census 2000. There were 185,744 households out of which 34.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.8% were married couples living together, 15.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.1% were non-families. 25.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.68 and the average family size was 3.23. In the county the population was spread out with 26.8% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 30.5% from 25 to 44, 22.1% from 45 to 64, and 12.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 93.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.1 males. The median income for a household in the county was $48,097, and the median income for a family was $57,429. Males had a median income of $41,609 versus $30,470 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,354. About 8.1% of families and 10.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.5% of those under age 18 and 8.1% of those age 65 or over. While most of its boroughs are working class, Camden County has many contrasts in its demographics. Most of Camden and parts of Lindenwold are considered highly impoverished, while Cherry Hill Township, Voorhees Township, Haddon Heights, and Haddonfield have a number of upper-income enclaves. Transportation Camden County hosts numerous county, state, U.S. and Interstates. Major county roads that pass through include County Road 534, County Road 536, County Road 537, County Road 543, County Road 544, County Road 551 and County Road 561. State routes that pass through are Route 38, Route 41, Route 42 (the North-South Freeway), Route 47 (only in Brooklawn), Route 70, Route 73, Route 90 (the Betsy Ross Bridge), Route 143 (only in Winslow), Route 154 (only in Cherry Hill) and Route 168. U.S. Routes that traverse are U.S. Route 30 and U.S. Route 130. The interstates that pass through are Interstate 76 (part of the North-South Freeway and the Walt Whitman Bridge), Interstate 295 and Interstate 676 (part of the North-South Freeway and the Ben Franklin Bridge (which is multiplexed with US 30)). Other limited access roads that pass through are the Atlantic City Expressway and the New Jersey Turnpike. There are five ACE interchanges that are within the county borders: Exits 44, 41, 38, 33 and 31. The only turnpike interchange that is in the county is Exit 3 at the border of Runnemede and Bellmawr. Government The county is governed by a Board of Chosen Freeholders consisting of seven members elected at-large for three-year terms on a staggered basis by the residents of the county.What is a Freeholder?, Camden County, New Jersey. Accessed January 8, 2012. As of 2012, Camden County's Freeholders are:Board of Freeholders, Camden County, New Jersey. Accessed January 7, 2012.Camden County Reorganization Meeting: Freeholders Louis Cappelli, Jr. and Scot McCray Sworn in; Freeholder Cappelli re-elected Freeholder Director and Freeholder Edward T. McDonnell Re-Elected Deputy Director, Camden County, New Jersey. Accessed January 7, 2012. *Freeholder Director Louis Cappelli, Jr. (Collingswood, Elected 2003. Term ends December 31, 2014) *Freeholder Deputy Director Edward McDonnell (Pennsauken Township, elected 1995. Terms ends 2013) *Rodney A. Greco (Gloucester Township, elected 2007. Term ends 2012) *Ian K. Leonard (Camden, elected 2009. Term ends 2012) *Scot McCray (Camden, appointed 2011. Term ends 2014) *Jeffrey L. Nash (Cherry Hill, elected 2010. Term ends 2012) *Carmen Rodriguez (Merchantville, elected 2008. Term ends 2013) In addition, the voters also elect a sheriff (Charles H. Billingham), a county clerk (Joseph Ripa), and a surrogate (Patricia Egan Jones). The Camden County Prosecutor is appointed by the Governor of New Jersey with the advice and consent of the New Jersey Senate (the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature). As with most counties in the state, the court system consists of municipal courts for each township, borough and city, as well as a New Jersey Superior Court for the county. The latter handles the more serious criminal and civil cases, while the municipal courts handle traffic and other minor items. Politics Camden County has long been a Democratic stronghold. The county usually votes overwhelmingly Democratic in national, state, and local elections. Almost all of the county is in the 1st congressional district, which has a Cook Partisan Voting Index score of D+14. In the 2004 U.S. Presidential election, John Kerry carried the county by a 25.5% margin over George W. Bush, with Kerry carrying the state by 6.7% over Bush.New Jersey Presidential Election Returns by County 2004, Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University. Accessed August 31, 2008. Barack Obama carried the county by 34.8% over John McCain in the 2008 U.S. Presidential election. Obama won New Jersey by 14.7%.New Jersery – Election Results 2008, The New York Times. Accessed November 28, 2008. There are 158,165 unaffiliated voters, 139,147 Democrats, and 43,669 Republicans registered in the county.Voter Registration Summary by County Municipalities *Audubon Borough *Audubon Park Borough *Barrington Borough *Bellmawr Borough *Berlin Borough *Berlin Township **West Berlin *Brooklawn Borough *Camden City *Cherry Hill Township **Ashland **Barclay-Kingston **Cherry Hill Mall **Erlton-Ellisburg **Golden Triangle **Greentree **Springdale *Chesilhurst Borough *Clementon Borough *Collingswood Borough *Gibbsboro Borough *Gloucester City *Gloucester Township **Blackwood **Blenheim **Chews Landing **Erial **Glendora *Haddon Heights Borough *Haddon Township *Haddonfield Borough *Hi-Nella Borough *Laurel Springs Borough *Lawnside Borough *Lindenwold Borough *Magnolia Borough *Merchantville Borough *Mount Ephraim Borough *Oaklyn Borough *Pennsauken Township *Pine Hill Borough *Pine Valley Borough *Runnemede Borough *Somerdale Borough *Stratford Borough *Tavistock Borough *Voorhees Township **Echelon **Kirkwood *Waterford Township **Atco *Winslow Township **Blue Anchor **Sicklerville *Woodlynne Borough Historical municipalities *Centre Township *Clementon Township *Delaware Township *Newton Township *Stockton Township *Union Township Education Camden County College is a two-year public community college serving students from Camden County. the school has campuses in Blackwood, Camden and Cherry Hill Township and was founded in 1967. Rutgers University-Camden is located in the downtown/waterfront district of Camden. The School of Osteopathic Medicine (UMDNJ) is located in Stratford. See also *National Register of Historic Places listings in Camden County, New Jersey References External links *Official website *Camden County Historic Photos, Part I (Audubon, NJ to Camden, NJ) *Camden County Historic Photos, Part II (Cherry Hill, NJ to Haddon Township, NJ) *Camden County Historic Photos, Part III (Haddonfield, NJ to Pennsauken, NJ) *Camden County Historic Photos, Part IV (Pine Hill, NJ to Woodlynne, NJ) *Camden County Historical Society Category:Camden County, New Jersey